Amazing Grace

One year ago yesterday I signed up for eHarmony.  One year ago today I was matched with a man who immediately contacted me using eHarmony's guided communication.  We met in person nine days later and got married eight months after that.  This is the beginning of our story, but actually our story together begins long before we met and is an example of God's amazing grace.

On November 15, 2013 I started a new journal. My entry that day was one sentence: "God is doing a work in my heart to be open to remarriage."

I don't believe that all dates are coincidental (the big example of that in my life is explained here), however I never gave the date I wrote that line a second thought until we were planning our wedding and had three potential dates on the table.  Only one of those dates was a Saturday and was therefore preferred.  We got married on Saturday November 15, 2014.

I spent the four months leading up to my eHarmony debut in prayer about this potential new season in my life.  Years before I had firmly shut the door of my mind on remarriage and had followed that up with actions that made remarriage seem less likely than literally winning the lottery (which I had already done figuratively once.)  God gave me many many scriptures and spoke to my heart about how it would be soon and quick.  I shared a bit with my pastor and he gave me some words of wisdom.  By January 1, 2014, God had given me a verse for the year and a word for the year.  The word was HOME.  I had no idea what He meant by that.  The verse was Ephesians 3:20-21.

 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,  Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

Interestingly this isn't a promise verse, but it is one that I had been given prophetically by my dentist when I was eighteen years old.  That year I got a full ride scholarship to college, plus so much outside scholarship money that it took care of room and board and I got a refund check every semester.  Who has even heard of that?  It was crazy.  Definitely exceeding abundantly above all I asked or imagined!  God often gives me scriptures for seasons in my life and had NEVER given me this verse again until 2014.

I have to admit that all of this sounds lovely and spiritual, and it was, but in between my wonderful and encouraging times with the Lord, my regular life had gone downhill.  I had been happy and content in my life, but ever since God started stirring in my heart about remarriage I had become more and more discontent, unhappy, lonely, and generally restless.  My discontent peaked at the beginning of March and I decided to "do something."  I kind of felt like I should sign up for eHarmony, but I was in such a funk that I really didn't think I was hearing from God.  I went ahead and filled out their giant questionnaire, but got sticker shock when it came time to pay.  I then went and found a free Christian singles site and signed up for that.  I realized that one of the things that had been holding me back from online dating was pride, and pride is not a good reason for doing (or not doing) something.  That particular dating site definitely wasn't for me, though, and two days later I followed my first leading and bit the bullet and paid for eHarmony (after finding a coupon code, of course).  That was March 4, 2014.  By March 5 I had several interesting "matches." Only one of them contacted me (not counting the creepy guy I had to get rid of).  He was a local man, an engineer who was a committed Christian and who volunteered time every summer to go to Russia to help with a camp for children with Down syndrome.

To Be Continued...